Archives: Walter Foster Books

Learn to draw a variety of dogs and puppies in graphite pencil from basic shapes.

Drawing: Dogs & Puppies teaches artists everything they need to know to achieve realistic pet portraits in graphite pencil. From choosing the right drawing paper and tools to understanding how to blend and shade, Drawing: Dogs & Puppies features valuable information for learning to draw. Aspiring artists will learn about composition, value, and contrast, as well as how to render various fur textures; expressive eyes; and realistic noses, ears, and mouths.

The book opens with an introduction to the basic drawing tools and materials, including pencils, erasers, supports, and blending tools. With simple step-by-step projects that start with basic shapes and progress to detailed, realistic final drawings, readers will learn to draw a variety of canines, including:

Expert instruction from artist Cynthia Knox, a breadth of subject matter, helpful tips, and inspirational artwork make Drawing: Dogs & Puppies the perfect addition to any dog-loving artist's library.

Designed for beginners, the How to Draw & Paint series offers an easy-to-follow guide that introduces artists to basic tools and materials and includes simple step-by-step lessons for a variety of projects suitable for the aspiring artist. Drawing: Dogs & Puppies allows artists to develop their drawing skills, demonstrating how to start with basic shapes and use pencil and shading techniques to create varied textures, values, and details for a realistic, completed drawing.

With Drawing: People, learn to create detailed, realistic drawings of people in graphite pencil from basic shapes.

Successfully drawing people is one of the most challenging, yet rewarding, artistic experiences. Drawing: People shows you how to capture the unique characteristics of people in graphite pencil, with tips on choosing materials, building with basic shapes, placing proportionate features, and shading to develop form and realism. With more than 40 step-by-step projects to both re-create and admire, artist William F. Powell teaches artists how to develop a portrait drawing to its fullest. He explores basic drawing techniques as well as art concepts that apply to drawing people, including proportion, perspective, and composition.

This 40-page, large-format guidebook includes in-depth information on how to render facial features, heads from various angles, and the figure in action, step by step. With this helpful guide, you'll even discover specific tips and tricks for drawing individual body parts, such as eyes, ears, noses, lips, hands, and feet. And the wealth of beautiful, inspiring examples ensure that Drawing: People will be a welcome addition to any artist’s drawing reference library. Drawing people can be tricky, but with this step-by-step guide, you’ll be rendering realistic portraits in no time.

Designed for beginners, the How to Draw & Paint series offers an easy-to-follow guide that introduces artists to basic tools and materials and includes simple step-by-step lessons for a variety of projects suitable for the aspiring artist. Drawing: People allows artists to develop their drawing skills, demonstrating how to start with basic shapes and use pencil and shading techniques to create varied textures, values, and details for a realistic, completed drawing.

Learn to draw one of art's most interesting and challenging subjects. Packed with practical advice, helpful tips, and fundamental drawing techniques, The Art of Drawing People explores how to capture detailed poses and likenesses in graphite pencil.

With step-by-step instruction from a variety of artists, you’ll find plenty of helpful tips on choosing the right tools and materials, fundamental drawing techniques, developing value and shading, and setting up an effective composition, as well as important information about the influences of anatomy, bone structure, and musculature. Detailed examples of facial features, hands, and feet will help guide you through the most challenging aspects of drawing people.

Whether drawing from life or from photographs, this comprehensive drawing guide is the perfect first step for beginning artists. Follow along, step by step, as professional artists reveal their drawing secrets. With practice, you’ll soon be able to capture amazing likenesses in your own pencil drawings. It’s as easy as 1, 2, 3.

Learn everything you need to know to get started with acrylic painting in Painting: Acrylic Basics.
 
From the detailed instructions in Painting: Acrylic Basics, aspiring artists will discover the basics of acrylic painting through engaging, inspirational lessons and useful artist's tips from painter Janice Robertson. Also included is helpful information for beginning to intermediate painters about selecting the right paintbrushes, supports, and paints to get started in acrylic painting. Additionally, artists will discover practical tips for using basic and special acrylic painting techniques to render textures, suggest dimension, and create special effects.
 
This large-format, 40-page painting guide offers a variety of approachable and easy-to-follow projects, including dynamic landscapes, colorful still life, and sweeping vistas. The step-by-step projects in this book are:

With engaging, inspirational lessons and useful artist's tips, Painting: Acrylic Basics will help you master this beautiful medium.

The How to Draw & Paint series offers an easy-to-follow guide that introduces artists to basic tools and materials and includes simple step-by-step lessons for a variety of projects suitable for the aspiring artist. With comprehensive instruction, plenty of artist tips and tricks, and beautiful artwork to inspire, Painting: Acrylic Basics is the perfect resource for any aspiring acrylic painter.

Whether you’re a master painter or an absolute beginner, watercolor is the perfect partner for your painting pleasure—and Painting: Watercolor Basics teaches you everything you need to know to get started in the medium.
 
Discover how to bring dimension and depth to your watercolor paintings with Painting: Watercolor Basics. Featuring the artwork of Deb Watson, this large-format, 40-book offers a brief introduction into tools and materials before jumping into the easy-to-follow, step-by-step projects. Each project includes a list of colors needed, instructions on color mixing, and other tips and techniques needed to complete the painting, such as rendering light and shadow and creating realistic textures.

The painting projects included in this book are:

With engaging, inspirational lessons and useful artist's tips, Painting: Watercolor Basics will help you master this beautiful and luminous medium.
 
The How to Draw & Paint series offers an easy-to-follow guide that introduces artists to basic tools and materials and includes simple step-by-step lessons for a variety of projects suitable for the aspiring artist. Painting: Watercolor Basics allows you to widen the scope of your artistic abilities, demonstrating how to begin with a basic sketch and then develop your painting step by step with special techniques that will bring your painting to life.

Learn to create strikingly realistic animal drawings in colored pencil beginning with basic shapes.

Drawing: Animals in Colored Pencil shows you how to render a variety of beautiful animals in graphite pencil, with tips on choosing drawing materials, building with basic shapes, and shading and coloring to develop form and realism. In this comprehensive, 40-page book, accomplished artist Debra Kauffman Yaun shares her artistic insights and techniques.

The book opens with essential information on choosing art tools and materials, understanding color theory, and creating basic pencil strokes. It then covers special colored pencil techniques, such as hatching, burnishing, layering, and blending. Finally, the author demonstrates how to accurately depict an assortment of adorable animals––including favorite family pets, wildlife, and birds––in a series of clear, step-by-step lessons. In-depth, easy-to-follow instructions allow aspiring artists to develop their drawing skills, guiding them from simple sketches to the final flourishes.

The included drawing projects are:

The How to Draw & Paint series offers an easy-to-follow guide that introduces artists to basic tools and materials and includes simple step-by-step lessons for a variety of projects suitable for the aspiring artist. Drawing: Animals in Colored Pencil allows artists to develop their drawing skills, demonstrating how to start with basic shapes and use pencil and shading techniques to create varied textures, values, and details for a realistic, completed drawing.

Let Drawing: Dragons and your imagination guide you as you learn to draw dragons, step by easy step.
 
Drawing: Dragons invites you into the fantastic world of artist Michael Dobrzycki and teaches you how to draw imaginative fire-breathing creatures from start to finish, no matter your drawing skill level. Featuring step-by-step lessons on drawing legendary dragons from around the world, as well as a wide variety of shading techniques in ink and graphite pencil, Drawing: Dragons covers everything you need to know to draw these fantastic beasts. 

Many different types of dragons are included in this book, which have been categorized using the more common terms and definitions from role-playing games, fantasy books, video games, and mythological tales. Each dragon subject is introduced with a brief history of the creature and summary of its characteristics. "Did you know?" sections throughout offer fascinating dragon facts.

The step-by-step drawing projects included in this book are:

Designed for beginners, the How to Draw & Paint series offers an easy-to-follow guide that introduces artists to basic tools and materials and includes simple step-by-step lessons for a variety of projects suitable for the aspiring artist. Drawing: Dragons allows artists to develop their drawing skills, demonstrating how to start with basic shapes and use pencil and ink techniques to create varied textures and characteristics, such as scales, feathers, wings, claws, and more.

Learn to create detailed, realistic portraits in graphite pencil from basic shapes.

Successfully drawing the human face is one of the most challenging, yet rewarding, artistic experiences. Faces & Features shows you how to capture the unique characteristics of the human face in graphite pencil, with tips on choosing materials, building with basic shapes, placing proportionate features, defining facial expression, and shading to develop form and realism. With a wealth of detailed step-by-step projects to both re-create and admire, Debra Kauffman Yaun teaches artists how to develop a portrait drawing to its fullest. She shares her personal methods for rendering the human face in all its expressiveness as she introduces tips and techniques for approaching babies, children, teenagers, and adults of all ages.
 
This book includes in-depth information on specific facial features as well as detailed, step-by-step exercises that explore ways to develop complete portraits. And the wealth of beautiful, inspiring examples ensure that Faces & Features will be a welcome addition to any artist’s drawing reference library. Drawing faces can be a challenge, but with this step-by-step guide, you’ll be rendering realistic portraits in no time.
 
The How to Draw & Paint series offers an easy-to-follow guide that introduces artists to basic tools and materials and includes simple step-by-step lessons for a variety of projects suitable for the aspiring artist. Faces & Features allows artists to develop their drawing skills, demonstrating how to start with basic shapes and use pencil and shading techniques to create varied textures, values, and details for a realistic, completed drawing.

Learn the basics of cartooning in Cartooning 1 with Jack Keely and Carson van Osten!

Cartooning 1 explores the basics of cartooning, from character construction to figures in motion, and shows you how to create a variety of lovable characters—from a perky puppy to a personable toaster! With step-by-step projects and artist's tips on drawing humans, cute critters, and anthropomorphized objects, you’ll find a wealth of charming cartoons to inspire and guide you as you learn the art of traditional cartooning, step by easy step. All you need to get started is this book, some basic techniques, and a little imagination.
 
In this book, Jack Keely (with some help from Carson van Osten) invites you into the cartooning world and explains his drawing techniques, as well as his methods of developing a cartoon to its fullest. You will learn to impart personality and expression as you discover a host of tips and techniques that will help you bring your cartoons to life. This book will be a welcome addition to any cartoonist's library!
 
Designed for beginners, the How to Draw & Paint series offers an easy-to-follow guide that introduces artists to basic tools and materials and includes simple step-by-step lessons for a variety of projects suitable for the aspiring artist. Cartooning 1 allows artists to widen the scope of their abilities, demonstrating how to animate a character, from character development to movement and dialogue.

Discover how to draw majestic trees in realistic detail, step by easy step, with Drawing: Trees with William Powell.
 
The qualities we most admire in trees are also what we value in ourselves or other people—strength, dignity, and perseverance. Perhaps this is why we’re naturally drawn to them as artistic subjects. From basic shapes to final details, this book teaches the step-by-step process of drawing a wide variety of trees. With just a little practice, you can create many different types of trees, each with its own unique qualities and elegance.

With tips on drawing root patterns, branches, fallen trees, and bark and simple techniques for rendering cast shadows and ground foliage, Drawing: Trees with William F. Powell teaches artists how to draw a wide variety of trees in graphite pencil, from basic shapes to final details. Learn about basic tree shapes and leaf types, as well as the fundamentals of shading, composition, and perspective.

Some of the step-by-step lessons included in this book are:

The How to Draw & Paint series offers an easy-to-follow guide that introduces artists to basic tools and materials and includes simple step-by-step lessons for a variety of projects suitable for the aspiring artist. Drawing: Trees with William F. Powell allows artists to develop their drawing skills, demonstrating how to start with basic shapes and use pencil and shading techniques to create varied textures, values, and details for a realistic, completed drawing.